Personal ballistic body armor, such as vests, helmets, and other articles, are formed generally of materials which serve to prevent penetration of a bullet or other projectile, and any other object that is forcefully applied to the armor, such as a knife. These articles are used for the armed forces, police and civilian applications. There is a growing demand to improve the wearability and the overall effectiveness of armor systems used by soldiers and police offices in combative environments. Overall thickness and weight of armor systems can affect wearability, but reducing these parameters in currently known systems can compromise the armor's effectiveness against penetration.
Certain constructions are known in the art. See, for example, U.S. Patent Application Nos. 2002/0164911, 2003/0228815, 2004/0045428, 2004/0132368 and 2005/0081571 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,183,993, 5,160,776, 5,677,029 and 5,935,678.
Despite the advances taught by the aforementioned patents and applications, there is a need for cross-piles ballistic materials that can be produces with high productivity and simplified manufacture.